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Vedic Scriptures that Describe Devotion
In the path of Devotion, the perfect scripture to be referenced is the Narada Bhakti Sutras (नारद भक्ति सूत्र). The twelfth Chapter of the Srimad Bhagavad Gita (श्रीमद् भगवद् गीता) is also a significant source of literature on Bhakti and devotion. Then there is another scripture for consideration, which is the 10th and the 11th Canto of the great Bhakti Scripture, the Srimad Bhagavatham (श्रीमद् भागवतम्).
It was Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, the great spiritual master of Swami Vivekananda who said that for this age of Kali, the Iron Age, only Bhakti, or Devotion towards the Lord, is the suitable method for the fallen people of this age. He recommended the following teachings to avail the complete Grace of Bhagawan.
(1) The path of divine love for the Lord, expressing one’s emotions for God is the ideal one.
(2) Expressing Love through prayers to God is highly recommended.
(3) Through praising God and remembering His divine qualities we can get close to Bhagwan, the knower of all hearts.
(4) Through Divine Chanting of His Holy names, remembering him all the time, should be an essential practice to adopt.
(5) Through recollection of the Lord’s names, we can invoke His grace.
(6) Through recollecting and remembering the Form of the Lord, we can purify our minds.
(7) Through divine contemplation and writing the names of the Lord we can focus and keep our minds and senses clean.
(8) Through discussions about the Lord and His devotees, with our hearts dedicated to them.
(9) Through the regular reading of the Pastimes of the Lord, we can purify our intellect
(10) By associating with the devotees of the Lord, to imbibe their mood, is perhaps the fastest way to progress on the spiritual path.
How can we make the Lord Happy?
The Lord says in the Gita, that whatever one does, whatever one eats, whatever one offers, whatever is offered as oblations, whatever is given to others, whatever austerities one performs, should be an offering to the Lord. This is the simple way of performing devotional service, Bhakti.
God does not expect man to perform glorious acts for Him. Even the simplest act, transforms or transmutes as an act of devotional service. The Lord calls upon man, to offer himself to the Lord through thoughts, feelings, intentions, emotions, words, actions, that may qualify as acts of surrender to Him. The Lord shall be happy to accept all these and in return He shall start transforming the heart of man.
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Other than Devotion to the Lord there is no other Reality
God does not expect man to perform glorious acts for Him. Even the simplest act, transforms or transmutes as an act of devotional service. The Lord calls upon man, to offer himself to the Lord through thoughts, feelings, intentions, emotions, words, and actions, that may qualify as acts of surrender to Him. The Lord shall be happy to accept all these and in return, He shall start transforming the heart of man.
Even in the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, throughout the eighteen Chapters, only devotion is the common string that connects all the processes described in the Gita. The Lord says that; they are very dear to Him who nurture devotion in their heart.
Other than devotion, the Lord exhorts, there is no other reality. Other than the Lord’s love for man and man’s love for God, nothing else is worthwhile and eternal. Devotion is the only process that can make a man truly happy and permanently satisfied, especially in this fallen age.
The power of devotion is such that, it can manifest the Lord even through a stone. Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa says: “The power of faith and devotion can easily help us reach our goals. One can never attain Bhakti so easily through the power of reasoning.” The Lord promises He shall remain bound to His devotees.
Inner Cleanliness is at the Core of Bhakti
As long as man nourishes selfish desires in his heart, the heart shall be unclean. Hence Grace cannot awaken. The heart remains dirty unless man relinquishes the need to hoard and possess. It is the tendency to covet that clutters the heart and makes it dirty. When man chants the names of the Lord to attain His love, the filth of greed and selfishness clears up and he shall be able to behold with clarity, the Grace of the Lord dawning upon him.
Surrender to the Divine means doing only what is pleasing in the eyes of God and refraining from doing anything contrary to His Divine Will. The Narada Bhakti Sutras states this while describing the path of real surrender. Prapatti is recommended by the Sri Vaishnava Sampradayam, in this direction.
One who loves the Lord and one who wishes to surrender himself at the feet of the Divine would consciously strive to walk on the path of righteousness—that way of thinking, feeling, and acting which will be acceptable in the eyes of the Lord and which would not go contrary to His Divine Will.
Following the mood of the Vedic Instructions shall infuse Bhakti
Only through true Devotion can man realize the Will of the Divine. Even though one may have established oneself in the vision of the Lord, through intense and regular practice of Devotion, one has to follow the instructions of the Vedic Scriptures and continue to follow its recommendations, as much as one is performing Devotion to the Lord within one’s heart, in all sincerity.
Only when one is bound by the spiritual laws, as enunciated by the Vedic scriptures, shall one overcome the risk of falling back into materialistic, defiled life systems. For, then, one’s devotion can secure the likely risk of moving away from the direction of God. There is a time when, despite all our sincerity, earnestness, and genuine devotion to the Lord, the weaknesses of our human nature are such that many times those things that are unspiritual and fiendish, proceed from our being.
Instead of our actions bearing witness to the divine, the contrary happens. To ensure against such lapses, to ensure against such sliding back or falling away from the path, one must always follow the Vedic Scriptures. Following the Scriptures in spirit shall guarantee man from such avoidable pitfalls.
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